Week 8 homework

Intervene in the narrative by telling the story of the walk to the tram stop which occurs on pages 43 and 44 from Johnno's point of view. Write in first person, articulating to the reader Johnno's thoughts and feelings about Dante, the visit and his reaction to what Dante did.

Remember that this is a narrative, so you should also narrate actions and include some dialogue.

You should begin by re-reading pages 43 and 44 to establish what the text contributes to our understanding of this situation.

You should also begin to practise the deliberate use of language features that will make your writing more effective - see the editing checklist.

                                                                               Editing checklist

1     Sentence length –varied length or deliberately chosen length.

2     Sentence openings –varied openings.

3     Punctuation – used correctly?

4     Have you tried to use something other than commas and full stops?

       Vocabulary – try to use the most effective word – look at verbs particularly.

       Have you tried to use examples of figurative language or imagery?

Practice intervention.

Narrative Intervention Writing Activity

A narrative intervention is where you as the writing fill a gap in the story or give a voice to a character or group that is silenced. In most narratives you are only hearing the perspective of one character or the omniscient narrator. The intervention asks you to choose a point or situation and develop it from an alternate perspective. You are telling their version of events.

 A famous example of this is the story, Wicked, by Gregory Maguire, which takes the original tale of The Wizard of Oz and tells it from the perspective of The Wicked Witch of the West, Elphaba.

Gaps - Gaps are places in the text where readers are invited to make connections by drawing on their “common sense” understanding of the world.

Silences - Silences result from textual gaps that enable readers to avoid questioning certain cultural values. I.e. your four-wheeled car has a reputation for breaking down – yet the salesperson does not tell you this.

Values - Values are ideas to which people attach importance, and on which they may base their actions.

ACTIVITY

Dante (the narrator) has a very clearly defined set of attitudes and values as a child. Re- read pages 37 – 39. What do you think Johnno thought about Dante during the early years of their acquaintance in Scarborough? From Johnno’s point of view, write a description of Dante. You should make Johnno’s attitudes and values clear in the process.

·         Dante describes himself at 13 as “a neat, darkly serious, well-brought-up little figure with a straight tie knotted in the conventional manner…someone who is too well pleased with himself to be true. I wasn’t true of course” (p38-39).

·         He speaks in this passage of his first step into adulthood as he realises many of the things he was told about life are in fact untrue.

 

Before you start writing, follow the scaffold diagram to help you write from the perspective of Johnno for this task. You may have already noted some of these things from our discussion so just remind yourself.

Look for textual examples of:

Dante’s rituals:

Read the text and answer the following:

Why does Dante do these things?

What is discipline to Dante?

Why is discipline important for young people?

Why does Dante begin to doubt the value of discipline?

What is Johnno’s view?

 

Tuesday's lesson

                                                                          

Write a description of a lesson in which Johnno is thrown out class from Soapie's point of view. Re-read the beginning of Chapter 1 and try to let the reader see Soapie's character and his understanding of Johnno through your narration. Post to your blog before the end of the lesson. If you have time, continue reading.